This project provided European eXperiences for Confidence in Skills and Employability (EXCISE) for 16 staff Training opportunities to Germany (A3) and Portugal (A4), 21 VET exchanges in vocational institutions for participants with special needs and 4 Training/Teaching assignments (accompanying adults) to Denmark (A1 & A2). The four activities within the project offered opportunities to gain wider experience in skills and employability mechanisms used in other countries with a focus on the non-formal learning environment. Student participants were all young people with special needs, learning difficulties and disabilities. Staff participants were teaching staff and technicians from apprenticeship training environments and those with a background in information learning technology who explored opportunities for learning through non-formal environments as a means of increasing vocational and employability skills. The project is summarised below in relation to the main activities that were delivered with its implementation: Activity A1 & A2: In today's environment social inclusion is very much on the agenda. This activity provided an unique and innovative educational, training and cultural experience for persons with Special Needs, Learning Difficulties and Disabilities. Participation provided the students with every opportunity to enhance their potential within a supportive and positive learning environment. The programme was specifically designed and drawn up in conjunction with our partner Korsor Production School to meet the needs of the target group involving positive learning opportunities through educational, training and cultural experiences and to enhance their independence by providing opportunities for them to travel and live away from home. Accompany adult funding was provided to support groups on a level that would be dictated by the individual needs of the participants on each of the 4 flows of this exchange, with an emphasis on allowing the participants to be as independent as their special need permitted. North West Regional College (NWRC) continues to work with this partner on hosting inward exchanges. Activity A3: At application stage it was intended that the evidence gathered over the course of this activity would be useful at enabling both sending and receiving organisations to improve the quality and effectiveness of their respective training programmes by identifying the existing issues and problems associated with the current programmes offered. The outcomes of this activity have far exceed expectations and these outcomes have been used to inform other providers and interested stakeholders and funding agencies of how vocational training programmes may be adapted to take account of the European context and enable greater mobility of tutors and students in the future. In addition to this the project benefited the local industries in both countries as the examples of best practice detailed within the vocational training frameworks and the associated training provision continues to be disseminated and acted upon. While 12 staff have participated in outward exchanges in two separate flows, we have in turn hosted over 30 inward exchanges in May 2015 and 2016 from our host organisation and several other training providers in their region in curriculum areas beyond those engaged on in the outward mobility. Activity A4: Robotics can easily get students engaged and excited in learning science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts with fun. The University of Minoh, Guimaraes - Portugal have developed, over 9 years, their annual RoboParty, which uses informal education pedagogy and robot kits to enthuse young students about STEM related subjects and develop technical, social and team building skills. This activity provided the funding for VET staff from NWRC to job shadow, with University of Minoh staff involved with the RoboParty, in order to acquire technical skills, in the operation of the robot kit and in turn experience the RoboParty by job shadowing, as a RoboParty volunteer at the 3 day event, with 400+ students and 100+ teams in March 2015. As a result of a successful job shadowing and attendance/volunteering at the RoboParty 2015 in Portugal, it is anticipated that a strategic partnership will be set-up in order to establish the 1st RoboParty, outside of Portugal, in the year 2017/18. This would allow a RoboParty to be held at NWRC premises using a similar methodology as in Portugal, and inviting local youth teams, regional youth teams and European member states youth teams to attend and develop their youths STEM skills and opportunities. As a wider impact the project has enabled NWRC to run smaller scale events locally and regionally using the robo-kits to promote STEM awareness to students from the wider Foyle Learning Community of schools and at events such as CultureTech 2015, where our students and staff provided learning in a non formal fun environment.